Evaporation type vehicle cleaning and cooling unit



Oct. 27, 1953 c. F. RICHTER, SR

EVAPORATION TYPE VEHICLE CLEANING AND COOLING UNIT 2 Sheets-Sheet 1Filed Jan. 5 1951 I; INVENTOR 5: f. flex/72123.12

4770QA/5Y5' Oct. 27, 1953 c. F. RICHTER, SR

EVAPORATION TYPE VEHICLE CLEANING AND COOLING UNIT File d Jan. 5, 1951 2Sheets-Sheet 2 TO WATER SUPPLY FIG: 4

Patented Oct. 27, 1953 UNITED PATENT es-57,026 izvm 'oimii eiwfiiirwammonia CLEANlNG Am) COOLING UNIT Flfiflk hichte'rv, Stu, Victoria, TEX-Applicition January 5, 1951, Serial No. 204,657 a exams. (c1. sti -e2)stratus, anii mare petiti'c'iilerly to an ilmp'rotegi evalpofation-typesir-cleaning and cooling unit for an auto'mbtiv vesicle and attest hejp'e in'o'unt'ed Within the body of passenger compartment of thevehicle.

An object of this invention is "to provide ah eir cleaning and coolingunit or the above indicated character which is paftic'ula'i'ly atiaptedtoreeeive d'r'afts of air from the outside eii' intake tubes of thevehicle, and circulate the ail" thx ough a porous wet ihedi'uin, wherebythe hit is coolecl an le'ane'd line to evapoi tioii of moisture prior todiseharge into, the ihteifioi of the vehicle.

A'iibthei object of this inir'entipnjis to proy-ide an evaporation-tyneclea iiirig and coolinguni-t of the above indiea'ted character whichpenniits the vehicle occupants to drive iii comfort with the windowsclosed, thereb eliminetu th'efliscomforts of wind b'ui'n which occui Wl}e n dr-iving in extremely hotwee'th'eit with the windows open endundesired noi es which aij ei'eateq when driving at high speeds with theWindows open. V

A further object of this invention is t9 proviclle an evaporation-typea'ir-cleah ihgand cooling mail: which is particularly fideibted forattachment ill:- teriorly of an iutoinotive i'e'hicle end is providedwith comm; vanes, thereby lpeir'nitting the cooled aha cl'e'ahed "air tobe directed to aill the vehicle A still further object of this inventionis to pre- Vi'd'e an ei elpoietion-tyfie 5ir-cleaning end eeolin'g' unitwhich is linelt'iculerli edaptegi tqrceiy air tobe cleaned he cooled foma lp eir o1; vehicle eir intake't1ibes, therebig inc eesing theefficiency and cooling eebaeity oi the unit.

A still fuithefobject of thisini'ention is tbpmtide an evaporation-typeeir-cleaningend cool ing unit which is pert icularly edantegforattechmen't interim-1y bi the vehicle beneath the board thereof With'o;t decreasing the vehicle capecit'y oi' adv'ei'sel' effecting theappearance" of the vehicle.

A 'sftill furthe'r noise; of this invention is tojiroviiie anevaporation-type aircleaning and cooling unit 'for attachment interierlyof en automotive vehicle which is relatively simpie in structure eniicheap to manufacture.

The above and still further objects eavem tages of the present inventionwill becdfiie if) parent upon consideration of the fiilld'tiih'ltaileddescription or the taxes conjunction with the memes ni' tiraiitii's,wherein Figure 1 1's 5 fi'iiliteleteltidfial View tif'hii 399,56

'2 ration-type air-eleafiing and cooling unit of the pi'e's'eiitinvention shown attached to an automotii'e Vehicle beneath the dashboa d'theredfg v I Figure; 2 is a top plan view of the eyeporation tyneair-cleahing and cooling unit of the present invention, With partsbroken away and shown in ct ,1 t Figure 3 is an enlargedfiegginehtarysectional View taken along the line 3-3 of Figure'z; Figure4 is an emerged sectionalvievy with br'oken away, taken along the line4-4 of Figure 2; l I Figure 5 is an enlargei fre g'menta'r'y sectionalView taken along the line 5-4 cinema: Fi'g'iii'e 6 is aii efim geefiegfiientery sectional View taken along the line 'B-B 6f Figui e i; and

Figure 7 is an enlarged sectional View taken anm gthe line 1-10fFiiii 4.s

V Referring now with bei'tlculirity to i al-1e clr-eiivitigs, whereinlike rererefie numerals-have been iijsed throughout the s'eiieial viewsto designate like parts, them is shown an alt-cleaning and cooling unitof the present-invention, genei el'ly asi'inl 'ted by the ref'eficiiumei'el H), which is beitic'ularly edebted i'fi'ounting inen-eutomm five vehicle which includes an inst 'uinentjganel 'I I asteering column 1-2 and gearshift rod l3 pesitlohed rearwai' dly of theihstpument panl com tiguoiis to one end thereof, a fire wen M spacefoifwrdly or and benebith the instrument panel and separating thei'ii'tefioiof the vehicie body ram the meter cembar tment rls esa a pmof sse a air intake tubes J3 and {I supported on 'tiair ersir'ig theTire Wei-ll H iid fiapted $0 121 tibttuce air into the 'i'rit'ribr ofthe vehicle. i

The" iair cleanifig 'afiii cooling unit l'll includes an elongated, Meiably eyimameal closed-ended tejnk 2U whichis edebtjed telbe ai'frengedinteriorly qtftheveh'ide ldng'itudiii ily'qt and beneath theinstfumerfit panel i l. clearly shown in Figure 4;, the tank 21)includes a cylindvieail side wall 21 end lTtendigh'thend end walls 22end 23. The i'tt'hahd end werll g2 wan 21 are arcuatel cut out, esindicated by refefehce numerals 23' the eijecent portions of thesteering column "12 a'jnci'the gea-rshif-t rod. Ifhe tank--20 issupported In'eens of a clamp -2 -Figme 3-; the tumbuckle 21 figure 4,and the mounting plate 28, Figure 5.

clearly shown {in Figure 3, the clamp -25 is th cumposed about thesteering column 26 and he's one eiii 'e ur d to the side wail 21 of thetank a by meens of e bolt 2 Q end has its other end se- (hired to theadjacent left han iii'e'ns oi the bolts 3'6; As clearly shown in Figureand the adjacent; end of the and 2'4 to accommodate" 4. the turnbuckle21 is secured to depend from an adjacent portion of the instrument panelH and is connected to the adjacent portion of the tank. In Figure thereis shown the mounting plate 28 which is bolted to the fire wall l4 andto another mounting plate 3| engaging the forward side of the fire wall[4 by means of the nuts and bolts 32. Suitable gaskets, designated bythe reference numerals 33 and 34 are interposed between the mountingplate 28 and the fire wall, and the forward mounting plate 3| and thefire wall.

Arranged contiguous to the ends of the tank 20 are the air inlets 35 and35 which are connected in communication with the air intake tubes l5 andI! at corresponding ends of the tank 20. The air inlets 35 and 36 are oflike structure and include open-ended ducts 3'! and 38 having one endsecured to the adjacent one of the intake tubes and I1, and having theother end communicating with the interior of the vehicle. Bridging therear discharge ends of the ducts 3i and 35 are the damper plates 35 andit for selectively constricting the ducts 3i and 33. Intermediate theends thereof, the ducts i l and 38 are provided with connecting conduitsM and 42, respectively, each of which is in communication with theadjacent one of the ducts and with the adjacent end of the tank 26.Accordingly, when the damper plates 39 and M! are closed, the air fromthe intake tubes i6 and ii is directed into the tank of the unit, andwhen the damper plates are open the air is permitted to flow directlyinto the interior of the vehicle, By selectively adjusting the damperplates 33 and 40, the amount of air directed into the interior of thevehicle and directed into the cooling unit can be varied.

Contiguous to and spaced from the right hand air inlet 36, the tank isprovided with an auxiliary air inlet 43 which has one end connected incommunication with the interior of the tank and has its other endsecured to the fire wall i l by means of the mounting plate 28,previously described, in communication with the blower i of the vehicle.Accordingly, when the vehicle is at a standstill or moving at a veryslow rate of speed, the blower M can be utilized to augment the supplyof air being introduced into the tank 20 by the intake tubes I6 and ll.The addition of the blower permits the cleaning and cooling unit I!) tobe utilized when thevehicle is at a standstill or is moving forwardly ata slow speed.

Arranged longitudinally within the tank an rotatably supported thereinis a rotor :25 which is adapted to receive a porous mass of filteringmaterial. The rotor 46 includes a supporting shaft 41 which is arrangedaxially of the tank 25 5 and rotatably supported on the end walls 22 and23 thereof by'means of the headed studs 8 and 45 and the washers and 5i.Secured midway between the ends of the shaft 41 is a solid disc 52 whichprevents air from the blower 44, enter ing the tank through theauxiliary inlet 53, from escaping through the left hand inlet 35 whenthe blower is being used to augment the air supply. Secured transverselyof the shaft 4? at opposite sides of the disc 52 are the spiders 53 andwhich cooperate with the disc 52 to support a.

foraminous spool-shaped core 55. Each of the. spiders 53 and 54 includesa plurality of radially projecting'arms 5B and a ring 51 secured to the4 intermediate and end sections of the core are fabricated of suitablemesh hardware cloth which is secured about the supports 53 and 54 andadditional end supports 61 and 62 spaced outwardly of the supports 53and 54. Circumposed about the core 55 are foraminous sleeves 63 and 64which are arranged in end-to-end, spaced relation with respect to eachother. Arranged on opposite sides of the disc 52 are foraminoussupporting discs 55 and 6 6 which are secured transversely of the core55, and the adjacent ones of the sleeves 63 and 64. The sleeve 63, theadjacent ortions of the core 55, the end support 6i and the supportingdisc 65 cooperate to form an annular foraminous receptacle or container61 for the reception of a loose porous mass of filtering material.Likewise, the sleeve 54, the adjacent portions of the core 55, the endsupport 62, and the supporting disc 66 cooperate to define anotherannular foraminous receptacle 68 for the reception of the filteringmaterial.

A water inlet SS entering the forward under part of the tank 25 isconnected by means of suitable pipes E5 and l! through an automaticfloat valve E2 to a source of water supply. Accordingly, water can beintroduced into the interior of the tank and maintained at apredetermined level in accordance with the adjustment of the automaticfloat valve 12. As clearly illustrated in Figure '7, the automatic floatvalve 52 is arranged within the motor compartment 55, and is supportedon the fire wall! 4 contiguous to and below the air inlet tubes l5 andll. Since the float valve 52 forms no part of the present invention andcan be of any conventional structure, the valve is not described indetail.

Overlying the tank 20 and connected in communication therewith is asuitable outlet 15 which has an open mouth '56 communicating with theinterior of the vehicle. As clearly illustrated, the outlet 15 is in theform of a hood which has a closed forward end connected about alongitudinally extending outlet opening 18 provided in the top of theside wall of the tank 20 and has an open rear end terminating contiguousand beneath the portion of the instrument panel carrying the radio.

Intermediate the ends of the open mouth 16 of the outlet l5 a plate i9is secured to the hood and supports the pull cord which may be manuallymanipulated by, the driver of the vehicle or any occupant thereof foreffecting the rotary movement of the rotor 46. As clearly illustrated inFigure 4, the intermediate portion of the pull cord 80 is trained aboutthe spoolshaped core 55 intermediate the. supporting discs 65 and 65."The pull cord is arranged so that a pull on one free end thereof willeffect-a rotary movement of the rotor through an angle of approximatelyand a pull on the other free end thereof will effect a rotary movementofthe rotor in the opposite direction through an outer ends'of the arms56. As clearly shownin Figure 4, the spool-shaped core 55 includes aplane cylindrical intermediate section 58, and

outwardly fia-red endsections 59 and 60. The

angle of approximately 180.

Suitable control vanes bridge the mouth E6 of the outlet 15 and areoperable from within the vehicle for selectively directing the cooledand cleaned air to the vehicle occupants. .As clearlyshown in Figure 1,a pair of control vanes 82 and 83 are arranged on opposite sides of theplate i9 and are pivota-lly supported for movement about a horizontalaxis to various inclined planes to direct the cooled and cleaned airemerging from the hood l5 upwardly or downwardly. Contiguous to the endsof the mouth 16 of the outlet 15 are supported additional control. vanes84 and 85 for directing the cooled,

cleaned air from side to side. Furthermore, the side of the outlet hoodis provided with an auxiliary outlet opening 86 which is provided witha, control vane 81 for directing the cooled air toward the feet of theoccupants of the wheels.

As clearly illustrated in Figure 4, the connecting conduits 4i and 42are arranged to prevent the Water in the tank 20 from being forced intothe air ducts 3'! and 38. The connecting conduits 4| and 42 are receivedwithin the end sec tions 59 and 60 of the spool-shaped core 55, and areshaped to fit the angle of the outwardly flared end sections.

In actual use, the air enters the tank 2t from the opposite endsthereof, passes through the wet filtering material of the core 46 andoutwardly through the open mouth 16 of the outlet 15. The air beingthereby cooled and cleaned of dust, the vehicle occupants are enabled todrive with the windows closed, thereby eliminating the discomfort ofwindburn which occurs when driving in extremely hot weather, andeliminating the noise incident to driving at a, speed where normalconversation or the vehicle radio cannot be heard. The arrangement ofthe device within the vehicle does not decrease the vehicle space oradversely affect the appearance of the vehicle. It has been found thatcooling and cleaning systems which are arranged exteriorly of thevehicle cause an unsightly bulk which ruins the appearance of thevehicle, and at the same time creates a wind drag, causing the vehicleto use additional fuel. The disposition of the unit beneath thedashboard permits the cool air to be directed to any and all of theoccupants of the vehicle.

Althought only one embodiment of the cooling and cleaning unit of thepresent invention has been described, it is readily apparent thatnumerous modifications can be made without departing from the spirit ofthe invention as set forth in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In an air cleaning and cooling unit for a motor vehicle, air intaketubes arranged in spaced relation, a cylindrical tank positioned betweensaid tubes, said tank having closed ends, and containing fluid, a hollowcylindrical liquid-absorbing core arranged concentrically within said atank, said core having open ends, air inlet conduits connected at oneend to said air intake tubes at points intermediate the ends of said airintake tubes, said air inlet conduits having other ends extending intothe open ends of said core and opening therein, and a discharge hoodoverlying said tank and connected thereto, said hood communicating withthe interior of the tank through an opening formed in the side wall ofthe tank and having a cooled and cleaned airdischarging mouth.

2. In an air cleaning and cooling unit for a motor vehicle, air intaketubes arranged in spaced relation, a cylindrical tank positioned betweensaid tubes, said tank having closed ends, and containing fluid, a hollowcylindrical liquid-absorbing core arranged concentrically within saidtank, said core having open ends, air inlet conduits connected at oneend to said air intake tubes at points intermediate the ends of said airintake tubes, said air inlet conduits having other ends extending intothe open ends of said core and opening therein, a discharge hoodoverlying said tank and connected thereto, said hood communicating withthe interior of the tank through an opening formed in the side wall ofthe tank and having a cooled and cleaned air discharging mouth, said airintake tubes having open discharge ends facing in the same direction assaid discharge mouth, and valves for selectively closing and opening thedischarge mouth and the discharge ends of the air intake tubes.

3. In an air cleaning and cooling unit for motor vehicles havinglaterally spaced air intake tubes having intake ends and discharge ends,a fluidcontaining tank adapted to be mounted between the air intaketubes, said tank having closed ends, a hollow cylindrical absorbent corepositioned lengthwise within the tank and having open ends, air inletconduits traversing the closed ends of the tank, said air inlet conduitshaving open ends positioned in the open ends of said core, said airinlet conduits having other ends connected in communication with saidair intake tubes at points intermediate the intake and discharge ends ofsaid air intake tubes, valves on the discharge ends of the air intaketubes, said valves being arranged to be closed to divert all of the airtaken in by the air intake tubes into the core in the cylinder and to beopened to permit some of the air taken in by the air intake tubes topass from the discharge ends of the air intake tubes, and a cleaned andcooled air discharge hood on said tank between its ends andcommunicating with the upper part of the interior of the tank, said hoodhaving a discharge mouth extending away from a side of the tank.

CHARLES FREDERICK RICHTER, SR.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 2,074,265 Kirby Mar. 16, 1937 2,230,020 Webster Jan. 28, 19412,364,249 Steele Dec. 5, 1944 2,432,755 Hanson Dec. 16, 1947

